Power Rangers SPD: Volumes 2 & 3 (September 25/05)
Power Rangers SPD marks the eleventh (!) show to carry the Power Rangers name, and though each series introduces different characters, they're all essentially the same. Five ragtag teenagers must join forces when they're recruited to become Power Rangers, and the series follows their efforts to fight intergalactic enemies.
Power Rangers SPD is no different, as the series revolves around a quintet of high school students who find themselves forced to save the world on a regular basis. The twist here - if you can call it that - is that the show transpires 15 years into the future, where aliens and humans co-exist peacefully (most of the time, anyway).
The Rangers this time around are: Jack Landors (Brandon Jay McLaren), Schuyler "Sky" Tate (Chris Violette), Bridge Carson (Matt Austin), Elizabeth "Z" Delgado (Monica May), and Sydney "Syd" Drew (Alycia Purrott). Their leader is a weird creature that resembles a dinosaur named Commander Cruger (John Tui), while their most fearsome enemy is the malicious and evil Emperor Gruumm (Rene Naufahu).
Volume 2 ("Stakeout") and 3 ("Wired") each collect five episodes of the series, presented in their proper order. "Stakeout" includes: "A-Bridged" (involving an alien bank robber), "Sam" Part 1 and 2 (revolving around a boy with teleportation powers), "Idol" (featuring a reunion between Sky and old friend Dru), and "Stakeout" (in which the villainous Sinuku reappears).
The five episodes featured in volume 3 are: "Shadow" Part 1 and 2 (Commander Cruger must ensure that his nightmare - involving the destruction of his home world - doesn't come true), "Abandoned" (in which the Rangers must learn to fight without the assistance of the Shadow Ranger, who is really just Commander Cruger in disguise), and "Wired" Part 1 and 2 (featuring the introduction of a cadet named Sophie).
Power Rangers SPD is just as silly and forgettable as its various predecessors, although the fact that the show is still around means that there's an audience for this stuff.
